LAHORE: Punjab Chief Minister Chaudhry Parvez Elahi lambasted on Wednesday his political opponents, saying they were doing politics on the matter of the caretaker Chief Minister.
Speaking on the matter, Mr. Elahi said, “Our nominees for the coveted caretaker Punjab Chief Minister slot are neutral, unlike the names finalised by the PML-N.” Lashing out at the opponents, Mr Elahi said, “The opposition’s dream on the matter of the coveted Punjab Chief Minister slot will never be fulfilled.”
Mr Elahi expressed hope that the committee, chaired by the Punjab speaker, would be able to deal with the issue, adding that only a caretaker Punjab chief minister would be elected, to which no one could object.
On the other hand, Punjab Governor Balighur Rehman has asked the Speaker Sibtain Khan to form a parliamentary committee that will finalise a name for the caretaker chief minister as the government alliance and opposition could not reach an agreement.
Earlier, Punjab Chief Minister Chaudhry Parvez Elahi recommended the names of serving bureaucrat, Ahmed Nawaz Sakhera, ex-federal health minister Naseer Ahmed Khan, and a retired civil servant, Nasir Saeed Khosa for the caretaker CM position after the provincial assembly was dissolved.
However, the joint opposition named media mogul Mohsin Naqvi and former bureaucrat Ahad Raza Cheem for the post. The both sides did not reach a consensus to select a person to head the interim setup within stipulated time period. Therefore, the governor has written a letter to the speaker asking him to forma a parliamentary committee to finalise a name within three days.
“Consequent to the fact that the Chief Minister and the Leader of the Opposition in the outgoing Provincial Assembly of the Punjab have not agreed on any person to be appointed as the care-taker Chef Minister within the stipulated time-frame in terms of Article 224(M) of the Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan. You are hereby required to fulfin your obligation in the manner prescribed in Article 224A(2) of the Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan,” the governor’s letter read.
The government alliance has recommended the names of Raja Basharat and Hashim Jawan Bakh and Mian Aslam Iqbal for the committee while the opposition is yet to announce the names.
If the parliamentary committee fails to pick a name for the interim CM post, both sides will send the names of their nominees to the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP). The electoral body will announce the name within two days. –Agencies
